Smyrna's Graden Strang gets congratulated by teammate Trey Wilder and other teammates after scoring a run in the 4th inning of the game against Siegel at the Siegel onWednesday April 22, 2015.
HELEN COMER/DNJ

MURFREESBORO –Siegel kept its hopes for a top-two finish in District 7-AAA alive with a late rally.

The Stars tagged Smyrna reliever John Sanderson for three runs in the bottom of the sixth to pull out a 5-4 win Wednesday night to even their three-game series.

The two teams meet at Smyrna at 6 p.m. Thursday with the winner clinching the second spot, behind 7-AAA regular-season champion Riverdale.

"I like this three-game series a lot more than two," said MTSU signee Blake Benefield, who picked up the win in relief of Jacob Key. "(Thursday) is it. We've got to give it our best.

"We just calmed everybody down and played it like a regular game. When we make good defensive plays, we usually win every time."

The bottom of Siegel's lineup rallied off Sanderson, whose Bulldogs (15-9, 10-7 in 7-AAA) gave him a two-run lead a half inning earlier.

Drew Benefield reached base on an error to start Siegel's rally. Kyle Clary followed with a single and then both advanced on Alex Carignan's sacrifice bunt. Colton Gipson, the team's No. 9 hitter, then singled in Benefield. Clary scored on Kirkland's single. After Benefield singled for his third hit of the game, MTSU signee Carson Lester drove in Gipson with a sacrifice fly.

"We got to the sixth and had the lead," Smyrna coach Barry Vetter said. "Then we made an error and then did not communicate. They did some good things and manufactured a run. They played good baseball. We played good baseball.

"They just beat us tonight."

Siegel (17-9, 10-7) took a 1-0 lead in the first when Dallas Padgett hit Kirkland to start the inning. Kirkland later scored on Lester's single.

But Smyrna answered in the third. Leadoff hitter Nathan Sanders singled and stole second. J.D. Robertson's single advanced him to third. Sanders scored on Camron Harper's sacrifice fly. Smyrna then took a 2-1 lead an inning later when Graden Strang reached on a fielder's choice and scored on Camron Roberts' double.

However, Siegel tied it a half inning later when Drew Benefield singled and later scored on a wild pitch.

But Smyrna finally got to Key in the sixth with two runs. Kendall Miller and Seth De Young each reached on fielder's choices before Robertson drove in Miller with a fielder's choice and Harper's single drove in Miller.

"I told our guys I was proud of them after we went down two; the feeling we had when we came off the field was a positive one," Siegel coach Craid Reavis said. We weren't panicked.